Summarizing My Day

C.F.C. is getting slightly on my nerves lately.
She is always waiting for me when I come into school, and she's always trying to talk to me about something. I think she has a little crush on me LOL.
Today she was upset because she had a fight with D.F. and D.F. gave her back her ad for the yearbook and told her to type it herself.
She didn't know what to do, and came to tell me that she wanted to talk to the principal. I told her that I'd take care of the ad, and that I didn't think the principal could do much for her. She wanted to go anyway, and I didn't stop her.
I walked into class and decided that they were very immature about sitting up front in the room. Every day when I walk in, I have the teacher's desk in the front of the room, and the girls are all pushed back against the back wall.
Today I told all the girls in the back to form another 5th row. Now I have 4 rows of 3 girls and 1 row of 4. I like it this way.
D.S.W. made a scene about moving her desk up to the front, but I know that secretly she wanted it. Her mother had asked me to change her seat to the front by PTA.
Today in class I taught the girls how to summarize by sending R.S., C.F.C., and M.S. out and telling a long detailed story to the class.
Then, D.S.W. retold the story to R.S. who retold it to M.S. who then retold it to C.F.C. who told it to the class.
By the time she was done, the story was unrecognizable.
I told them this was because they had been focusing too much on the small details.
I taught them that summarizing is all about getting the gist of the story.
So then I told them another story, and this time they took notes on the important details. After I was done, they condensed their notes even more, and then they had to read it back to me. They managed to do a good job; most girls got the story down in less than 5 sentences.
In 7th grade, we did a huge review for the test tomorrow, and I kept getting annoyed with N.N. for answering detailed answers when we were trying to have a quick review.
By the time she finished giving me the answers I wanted, I had forgotten the question I had asked. ARGH!
We read the story of the Jewish soldier in Valley Forge, and the kids loved it.
I hope it helps them on their test tomorrow.
After that we did maps, and any girl who volunteered to say the entire map so far to me with all the capitals got a raffle ticket for the Chinese auction they'll be having next Tuesday for Chanukah.
Each teacher is raffling off privileges that the kids are dying to win. I gave some good ones out...I hope I don't regret them.
I promised a +3 on any test, and a lunch period to study with me for a test, and 2 free journal entries, and something else pretty good that I can't remember right now.
The kids are dying to get the lunch period...I hope it doesn't go to N.N. or C.F.C.!!!